Young Archaeologists' Clubs in the West Midlands

The West Midlands currently has two branches of the Young Archaeologists' Club.

Birmingham Young Archaeologists' Club
c/o Blakesley Hall, Blakesley Road, Yardley, Birmingham B25 8RN
Contacts:
Kirsty Nichol, telephone: 0121 464 2193
Juliet Porter, telephone: 0121 355 6370

Worcestershire Young Archaeologists' Club
Historic Environment and Archaeology Service, University of Worcester, Woodbury, Henwick Grove, Worcester WR2 6AJ
General enquiries: Deborah Overton, telephone: 01905 855 494
Membership Enquiries: Sheena Payne-Lunn, telephone: 01905 721 133

The Worcestershire Young Archaeologists' Club are very pleased to announce that the Northwick Manor Community Heritage Project is one of only three projects to be highly commended as part of a prestigious national award.

The Northwick Manor Community Heritage Project was launched in April 2008 after nearly £50,000 of Heritage Lottery funding was awarded to the club, supported by Worcester City Council and Worcestershire County Council, to engage with local people through the fascinating historic landscape of Northwick and Bevere. The project resulted in a wide variety of events, workshops and activities including excavation, photography, art exhibitions and oral history recording, and culminated in the launch of the Northwick Manor Heritage Trail in May 2010. More details can be found on the Northwick Manor Community Heritage Project web pages.

The Marsh Archaeology Award is made to an individual or voluntary group, active in the United Kingdom, in order to recognise and promote high quality engagement with the stewardship of the archaeological heritage of the UK. A shortlist was drawn up by a selection panel consisting of the Council for British Archaeology's Director, the Director of Archaeology Scotland, and an appointed CBA trustee. Also shortlisted were Gloucester City's Clutch Clinic Community Group (highly commended) and the Dartmoor Cairn Survey and Repair Project, which was awarded the overall prize of £1000.

Members of the Worcestershire Young Archaeologists Club were invited to attend the CBA's Winter General Meeting to give a presentation on the project and to receive a commendation certificate, presented by the award's sponsor Brian Marsh OBE.

Members of Worcestershire Young Archaeologists Club form "WYAC" on the steps of the British Academy after the presentation of their commendation certificate on March 7th 2011

Various materials that were produced during the course of the project, are now available via our website. These include a fully digitised version of Doharty's Map of the Manor of Claines from 1751-3 (via a link to the Worcestershire Tithe and Inclosure Map website), fieldwork reports, oral history transcriptions and research on the area. Details of the heritage trail are also available, for anyone that would like to visit!

Sheena Payne-Lunn
Worcestershire Young Archaeologists Club

More information on YAC activities nationally can be found on the main CBA website.